News
Hernandez making a Cy Young case
Seattle (66-62) vs. Kansas City (49-78), 7:10 p.m. PT
By Christian Caple / MLB.com
08/28/09 2:15 AM ET
SEATTLE -- At first glance, there doesn't figure to be a whole lot of reason for fans outside of the Seattle area to care much about the Mariners series with the lowly Kansas City Royals this weekend. But for those keeping a close eye on the Cy Young Award race, this series will be an interesting one to watch. Felix Hernandez, the Mariners ace and Cy Young candidate, will take the mound against the Royals on Friday looking for his 13th win of the season. And on Sunday, Kansas City ace Zack Greinke will look to further his argument for the coveted pitcher's award in the series finale. Hernandez will enter a fairly tough stretch of opponents after his start on Friday against the Royals. If the Mariners keep their rotation the way it is, and Hernandez doesn't skip any starts or skip over anyone else's, he'll face the American League West-leading Angels at the end of this homestand and then pitch against them again in his next start. Those two outings will be followed by a start against playoff-contender Texas and a start against the Yankees before getting somewhat of a break with an outing against the Blue Jays. His final start of the season, if he pitches every fifth game, would come against last-place A's on Oct. 1. So, after Friday, four of his final six starts could come against serious playoff contenders, including two division leaders. Those games, obviously, will be crucial in determining where he stands as a Cy Young candidate. Right now, his numbers seem to suggest he's probably in the top three or so. He's 12-5 this season with a 2.73 ERA, good for second-best in the AL -- behind Greinke, whose 2.43 ERA leads the league. Hernandez is fourth in the AL with 173 strikeouts, trailing Greinke, who's in second place, by 24. Another Mariners player chasing a milestone is Ichiro Suzuki, who hasn't played since Sunday with tightness in his left calf. That's not helping any in Ichiro's quest for his ninth consecutive 200-hit season. He's 16 hits shy of the mark. The right fielder took batting practice on Thursday and jogged in the outfield for the first time since he was sidelined. There's still no timetable for his return, manager Don Wakamatsu said. They want him to be at full strength before trying to play him again. "His heart says get in there, but it is in the calf area where if he moves fast, there's a chance of injuring it again," Wakamatsu said. "We want to make sure that jog out there becomes a little bit more of a sprint before we make that decision." Pitching matchupSEA: RHP Felix Hernandez (12-5, 2.73 ERA)
After winning seven consecutive starts between May 24 and July 22, Hernandez has lost two of three decisions despite surrendering three or fewer earned runs in each of his past five outings. Hernandez ranks among the league leaders in ERA, strikeouts and worst run support. He has 25 strikeouts and just five walks in his past three outings. This will be his first start against the Royals this season. He is 2-1 with a 2.73 ERA in his career against Kansas City. KC: RHP Brian Bannister (7-10, 4.50 ERA)
Bannister took the loss on Sunday against the Twins, giving up four runs in six-plus innings, but the good news was that he pitched much better than in his previous two outings. His stuff improved, he walked only one and he was getting a lot of ground balls -- although some found holes for hits. Bannister's biggest downfall was a curveball that Michael Cuddyer hit out of the park, but even that pitch was a good one, low and right at the catcher's mitt. This is his second go against the Mariners this year. On May 7, he shut them out for six innings in a 3-1 win. Tidbits
Carlos Silva will throw a bullpen session on Saturday, Wakamatsu said, and if all goes well the right-hander will be sent out to Triple-A Tacoma for a rehab assignment. ... Third baseman Adrian Beltre is eligible to come off the disabled list on Friday, but Wakamatsu still isn't sure if Beltre's contused testicle has healed enough for that to happen. "I don't know if he'll be ready or not," Wakamatsu said. "I think the biggest concern is if he has to dive back in to first, is there a chance of damaging? Those are things we're still running dialogue on and we'll continue to." ... Wakamatsu said he'll wait until later to announce who the club's September callups will be. He said there will be about five or six of them. ... Closer David Aardsma, who recorded his 30th save of the season on Wednesday, is just the ninth player in MLB history to have a 30-save season without a prior career save heading into the year. Tickets
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• Saturday: Mariners (Ian Snell, 4-9, 5.37) vs. Royals (Gil Meche, 6-9, 4.75), 7:10 p.m. PT
• Sunday: Mariners (Ryan Rowland-Smith, 2-1, 4.05) vs. Royals (Zack Greinke, 12-8, 2.43), 1:10 p.m. PT
• Monday: Mariners (Luke French, 4-3, 3.92) vs. Angels (Joe Saunders, 10-7, 5.27), 7:10 p.m. PT
Christian Caple is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
